Christmas Challenge Weight Loss Tips: Week 4

Hope you're still going well on the WLR Christmas Challenge.
By now you've probably really started to notice a difference in
the way you look and how you feel.

With the weather getting colder and the nights drawing in,
how do you stop the winter blues from getting the better of you
and leaving you reaching for comfort food? This week, I've put
together some top tips to help you stick to your healthy eating
plan as the winter months approach.

1. Don't skip meals

OK, you've heard it a hundred times before, but you're less
likely to crave comfort foods if your blood sugar levels are
regularly topped up.

Skipping meals will send blood sugar levels crashing with the
result that you'll soon be reaching for your favourite foods -
and while you might love a nutritious plate of cottage pie,
chances are you'll be too hungry to prepare and cook it, and
instead fill up on a king-size bar of chocolate.

The key is to eat regularly (including breakfast) and to make
sure each meal contains carbs that release sugar into the blood
slowly and steadily. Good choices include wholegrain bread,
brown rice, wholewheat pasta and oats.

2. Go for a walk at lunchtime

Believe it or not, a quick 15-minute walk during your lunch
hour may actually help to control the urge to fill up on comfort
food. That's because daylight triggers the brain to produce a
mood-boosting chemical called serotonin, which promotes feelings
of relaxation and happiness. Unfortunately, a lack of light - as
is the case in the winter - lowers levels of serotonin with the
result that depression, tiredness and an increased appetite are
far more common.

While a sunny winter break is guaranteed to help, a quick
trot around the shops at lunchtime is a more practical and
affordable way to get some daylight and top up serotonin levels
as a result! And of course, all that walking will help to burn
calories and tone up leg muscles.

3. Pack in the protein

Eating plenty of foods rich in the amino acid tryptophan may
help to curb cravings for comfort foods. This is because
tryptophan (a building block for protein) is used to make
serotonin.

Bottom line: the more tryptophan in our diets, the more
serotonin we make, the happier we feel and the less likely we
are to constantly feel hungry and crave comfort food.

4. Fill up on healthy carbs

Ever wondered why you crave carb-laden, stodgy food in the
winter but are happy with a salad in the summer? Many experts
believe that as well as giving blood sugar levels a temporary
boost, filling up on carbohydrate-rich foods like biscuits,
doughnuts, chocolate and piles of toast with butter and jam also
boosts serotonin levels - and this can make us feel instantly
happier, particularly in winter when levels of feel-good
serotonin are at a low.

The way carbs help to boost serotonin is complicated, but
ultimately, they trigger the release of the hormone insulin,
which helps tryptophan enter the brain, where it's used to make
serotonin.

The key is to swap sugary carbs for those that are higher in
fibre and other nutrients, for example, swapping
chocolate-coated cereal for porridge, white bread and jam for
wholegrain toast and peanut butter, and white rice for brown
rice.

5. Identify your favourite comfort foods

Recognising the foods you usually reach for when you need
cheering up means you'll be able to plan ahead so that you can
incorporate them into your daily diet plan.

Interestingly, a study carried out at the University of
Illinois found that men and women tend to opt for different
comfort foods. The researchers found that men were far more
likely to find comfort in foods traditionally prepared by their
mothers such as mashed potato, pasta, meat dishes and soup. In
contrast, women were far more likely to go for foods that
required little preparation such as chocolate and sweets.
Nevertheless, the study found that ice cream is the favourite
comfort food of both men and women. That's good news considering
there are now plenty of low-fat varieties of ice cream available
- and you can double the comfort factor by serving it with
stewed apple or a sliced banana!

6. Don't deny yourself

Tying to avoid certain foods means you'll almost certainly
end up over- indulging in them at some point. Instead, enjoy
some of your favourite comfort foods from time to time - after
all, many typical comfort foods aren't even 'unhealthy'!

Stews, soups, meat dishes and pasta dishes, for example, can
form the basis of a healthy, balanced meal - and it's usually
quite easy to adapt the ingredients or cook them in a different
way to lower fat and calorie contents.

Take a look below at how some of your favourite comfort foods
can be adapted:

Macaroni cheese - use wholewheat macaroni (or another
pasta) and make the cheese sauce using low-fat spread, skimmed
milk and reduced-fat Cheddar cheese

Stews and casseroles - cut all visible fat off meat and
remove skin from chicken. Use a little less meat but add loads
of extra vegetables. Or why not add a handful of barley,
lentils or beans to really up the comfort factor?

Soups - opt for lower-fat soups such as vegetable, carrot
and minestrone, rather than creamy varieties. Or make your own
soup by liquidising a serving of your favourite stew or
casserole. Simply serve with crusty Granary bread for a
delicious meal

Sausage and mash - choose low-fat sausages and grill them
rather than frying; add a little skimmed milk and low-fat
spread to mash, rather than cream and butter; and serve with
garden beans or baked beans to boost fibre intakes

Cottage pie - dry fry extra-lean minced beef and add loads
of mushrooms and carrots to make it even more filling. Don't
forget to use low-fat spread and skimmed milk in the mash to
cut fat and calories

Fish and chips - if you're making this meal at home, grill
or bake the fish rather than frying it and choose low-fat oven
chips. If you can't resist the local chippie, ask for the
smallest piece of fish available - and share the chips!

Traditional fry up - ditch the frying pan and instead
grill low-fat sausages, lean bacon and fresh tomatoes. Poach
or bake a handful of mushrooms, scramble eggs and add a
tablespoon of baked beans. Serve with a slice of wholegrain
toast and low-fat spread

Apple pie/crumble/strudel and custard - have a baked apple
stuffed with delicious juicy sultanas and opt for ready-made
reduced-fat custard or make your own custard using skimmed
milk and sweetener

Toast and jam - use wholegrain bread, low-fat spread and
just a thin spread of jam

Porridge - make it with skimmed or semi-skimmed milk and
sweeten with artificial sweetener. Add a handful of raisins or
a sliced banana for an extra sweet boost

Take a 24 hour free trial and join the
Challenge by posting news of your progress, advice and
tips on the Christmas Challenge Message Board. Share in the fun, support and camaraderie of a
WLR Challenge. Try it free for 24 hours.

Take a 24 hour free trial and join the
Challenge by posting news of your progress, advice and
tips on the Christmas Challenge Message Board. Share in the fun, support and camaraderie of a
WLR Challenge. Try it free for 24 hours.